Thomas crossley



. UNITED sfrA'rEs PATENT oEEioE.

THOMAS OROSSLEY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR PRINTING WOOLEN AND OTHER GOODS.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 11,118, dated June 20, 1854.

To all lwhom t may concern;

Be it known `that I, THos. CizossLEY, of

Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and Improved Machine for Printing vWoolen and other Goods and House Paper, which maa series of blocks to a long table or stationary platen, the blocks being alternately moved out upon each side of the machine to receive their color and carried back and depressed upon the goods which. are fed forward over l the surface of the table, between each impressio-nan amount equal to the width of the x blocks.

To enable others skilled iii the art to make and use my invention I will proceed to"describe the method which I have adopted of carrying it out; I will first describe" the principal parts of the machine, and thenits general operation, setting forth finally those parts which I consider as new and for which I desire to secure Letters Patent.

The machine represented in the accom- `panying drawings is arranged with three blocks, any other number mayhowever be employed acording to the number of colors to be applied. n i

\ A is the frame work of the machine' B,

` the driving shaft; this latter carries a pinion O, which engages with the cof wheel D, uponthecam shaft E. From this shaft allthe operating parts of the machine derive their mot-ion. The goods are"fed`through the machine `and the pattern registered in the following manner. l

F, F, areendless chains which carry` the hooks a, upon which the fabric 4is stretched. These chains are composed of links which are united byhinges b, and receive an intermittent motion through the `machine which is communicated to them in the follo-wing manne-r.

G is a cog wheel upon the shaft H (Figs. i

1 and 2) the teeth of which engage with the teeth on the underside of the chains F.

y I (Fig. 6) is a ratchet wheel also attached to the shaft H, and having two or more teeth c.

K, is a` short drum which runs loose upon the shaft H, i'n immediate contact with the ratchet wheel I.`

Z is a pawl attached to the drumk, which enters the teeth c, of the ratchet wheel, the spring f, serving to keep the pawl in contact with the wheel.

y It is apparent from the connections of the parts above explained that when the drum K, is turned in one direction it will carry with it the shaft I-I, and the cog wheel G;

when it is turned in the opposite direction however, the pawl d, slips over the tooth c,

and no motion of the shaft H, results.

L, is a cog wheel attached to the drum K,

f and `revolving with it loosely upon the shaft M, is a vibrating arm pivoted at N, and having a toothed segment at one end,

wliich engages with the cog wheel L. The other `end of the arm` M, is connected byy lmeans ofthe rod Oi, to the lever l (Figs. 1 I and 4t) which is pivoted to the main frame y of the machine at g, and which is vibrated `up and down by the cam Qupon the shaft `E, a pin h, upon the lever P entering a l groove z', in the face of the cam. Fig. 8, is a developmentof the throw of this cam. The

' arm M, is thus vibrated as the shaft E, re- ;volves, and the shaft H, and cog wheel G,

receive an intermittent motion `in one direction by which means the chains F, which carry the material are fed intermittently through the machine.

Thebed of the machine is so formed at. its forward end (as seen in Fig. 3) that the chains F, are permitted to approach each other, and at this point the fabric to be printed is caught upon the hooks a, and thus ;as the chains advance upon their thv-'erging ways is stretched `out smooth and level preparatoryto being printed; and as it is `held rigidly and securely by the chains, and

is fed "uniformly through the 4machine an Iamount exactly corresponding to the length to be printed at each impression, perfectregister of the pattern is obtained.

The machinery by which the' blocks are operated will now be explained.

R, R, are the blocks which are secured to their plates S, and operated in the follow ing manner: T, areI the block carriages through holes in the four corners of which pass the flat headed pins m, which screw into the plates S (Figs. 1 and 2) and thus the latter are suspended from their carriages T. n, are springs which embrace the pins m, and bear upon the under surface of their heads and the top surface of the carriages, by the action of which the plates S, and the blocks secured to them are kept constantly elevated as seen in Fig. l when they are not depressed by other means which will be hereafter referred to. The tension of the springs n, and consequently the force with which the blocks are held up to their carriages is regulated and adjusted by screwing the pins m, more or less into the plates. 0, is a pin in the center of the plate S, which it enters with a screw, and which maybe raised or lowered at pleasure.

Motion is communicated to the printing blocks in the following manner: V, (Figs. 1 and 5) is a crank upon the end of the shaft E, having a pin which plays in a groove W, of the vibrating sector X. This sector is pivoted at the point Z, and receives Van intermittent vibratory motion around this point as t-he crank arm V, revolves, the groove W, being so formed that after each vibration, and while the pin Z, is passing through the circular portion of the groove the sector shall remain stationary. The diagram Fig. 7, serves to illustrate the motions of this sector. lVhile the crank pin ispassing from 1 to 2, it moves in the straight portion a o-f the groove W,

' andthe sector consequently moves'with it;

groove, and the sector remains stationary upon the opposite side until the pin reaches the point 1, when it again commences toreturn as before. As the velocity of the pin Z, is uniform, and the sector performs itsY vibration 'inthe one case while the pin is passing from 3 to 4, and in the other while it ismoving from 1 to 2, it is evident that the sector will move with a velocity in the first instance double that which it has in the other. The vobject of this difference of vei locity imparted to the blocks while running out and in is as follows: There is a limit to the velocity at which the blocks may be made to travel after they have received the color, asfif moved tooquickly the color is thrown or disturbed on the surface of the block and t-he pattern is not printed uniformly; it therefore becomes necessary that their velocity should not exceed a certain rate, this necessity however, does not exist after the impression has been made, and the blocks may be allowed to move out with double the velocity. The arc of the segment X is furnished with cogs c', which engage with the cog wheel Z upon the shaft f', and thus this shaft is made to revolve intermittently in one direction and the other. g' is a gear upon the shaft f', which engages withV a gear it', of equal dimensions, upon the shaft z", which is thus caused to move when the shaft f', moves, though in a contrary direction. The shafts f', and z", carry cog wheels 7c', (Figs. 1 and 2) which engage with rack bars m' upon the carrying frames of the blocks, by which means the latter are alternately run out to receive the color and returned to give the impression to the fabric, the carriages traveling in and out upon the ways n', which are secured to the frame work of the machine. f

I will now describe the manner in which the color is put upon the blocks preparatory to printing.

A' is a cam upon the shaft E, which actuates the arm B'; this arm is pivoted to the frame work rat g, and is connected bythe rod D', to thelever C', which is secured to the shaft F', running longitudinally beneath the machine, the shaft being thus caused to vibrate back and forth as the shaft F, revolves. H', are the cases which are caused to rise and transfer the color to the blocks while the latter are run out for the purpose as in Fig. 1. They are operated in the following manner: From the center and bottom of the case descends the Ashaft or rod I', which slides freely up and down within the hollow standards K'. G', are levers pivot-ed to the frame of the machine,one for each case, upon the'long arms of which rest the rods I', which support the cases H': L', are cams upon the shaft F', which impinge against the .short arms of the levers G', as the shaft F' vibrates, and thus the cases are caused to rise and transfer the color to the face of the blocks. M', are the sieves upon which the coloris distributed by the attendants between each impression. It :is evident that the ordinaryV roller sieves Vmay be arranged to operate beneath the blocks after they are run out, in place of the apparatus above described. f r

The neXt operation to be described` is the giving of the impression or the transferring of the color from the blocks to the fabric.

N', are short vertical followers which slide freely up and down in the transverse bars O' and which are held up when not otherwise depressed by the springs P'. These followers are placed directly over the center of the block carriages when the latter are drawn in for the-purpose o-f giving the impression, and also immediately beneath the cam shaft E. Q are cams upon the' latter shaft, the purpose of which `is to depress the followers N, at the required moment when the impression is to be made, the pressure being brought to bear upon the adjusting stud p, in the center` of the plates S (Fig. 2) thus depressing the blocks R,

explained.

against the action of the springs n down upon thesurface of the fabric as already 1f it be found desirable that the blocks should not touch the same portionof` the sieves twice in immediate succession, the latter may be made to vibrate between each contact so as to cause a different portion of the sieve to be impressed upon the blocks.

VVit-h wide goods it will sometimes be found necessary to have an endless apron between the platen and the fabric to `be printed, which apron should move with a velocity equal to that of the feed chains and in the same direction.

Operation; Starting with the parts Ain the position represented in Fig. l, the machine is set in motion and the carpet or other fabric to be printed is caught over the hooks of the endless chains, which are immediately forced apart by the divergence of the ways upo-n which `they travel, and the goods are uniformly and evenly stretched preparatory to the commencement of the printingoperation, and remain so until it is completed.

The chain having mo-ved on a distance equal to the length of one block, stops; while this is taking place the pin in the crank V, is passing through the curve L to l (Fig. 8) of the'sector X, the blocks remain motionless over the cases H', and the latter are raised, through the operation of the cam A', and the parts actuated thereby in the manner already described; the color is thus given to the blocks. Should the pressure be greater upon the under surface of the latter than is necessary to impart the requisite amo-unt of color to them, they are allowed to yield by rising slightly from the ways n which carry them. The crank pin now enters the straight portion a of the cam groove 1V, and the blocks are carried in with their slow motion the pin passing through the arc l to 2 (Fig. 7 The cam shaft E, continuing to revolve, the cams Q force down the followers l which in turn bear upon the studs 79, which rise from the center of the plates S, to which the blocks are secured, and the latter are thus depressed, and the impression is made; the pressure of the blocks upon the fabric being adjusted by raising or depressing the screw studs p. An impression is thus made with all the blocks at once and the number of colors that may be simultaneously applied is only limited by the number of blocks which the machine is calculated to operate. Vhile the impression is thus being made by all the blocks, the crank pin is passing through the circular portion of the cam groove W, through the arc 2 to 3 (Fig. 7) and the sector X remains stationary. The cams Q now pass off the rollers upon the top of the followers l and thelatter are drawn up by their springs P the blocks being thus relieved are raised by the springs n, and the crank pin entering the straight portion b, of the groove WV, the sect-or is carried back and the blocks are returned with their quick motion to the position represented in Fig. lthe crank pin passing through the arc 3 to 4,-while the pm is passing through the portion a to 1` of its circuit, the blocks remain stationary and receive their color, and a new feed of the fabric takes place,-the blocks are then` carried in and depressed as before, and thus the operation continues, the material having received each color in succession from the appropriate block passes out of the machine finished.

It will be perceived that a section of the fabric is printed with all its colors at each depression of the blocks, and that as it is held regidly by the endless chains through the whole of the operation the register must be perfect.

What 1 claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent isl. The combination o-f the series of blocks with the stationary cases or their equivalents and the endless chain register operating in the manner substantially as described, by which any number of colors may be simultaneously applied, and a section of the figure be completed each time the blocks are depressed.

2. I claim the within described method of holding and feeding the material to be printed by means of the endless chain and hooks, by which the material is held rigidly until the operation is completed, and thus perfect and unerring register is obtained.

3. I claim the method substantially as herein described of giving motion to the blocks by means of the sector X or its equivalent, whereby they are moved in with a slow motion and out with a rapid motion, and are caused to remain stationary at the two extremes of their traverse, while they receive their color and the impression` is made.

y THOS. GROSSLEY.

l/Vitnesses:

SAM I. COOPER, JOHN S. Chow. 

